Sermon Study Guide | Series: Numb and Numb-er |
Sermon: Sleeping Through The Storm |
Scripture: Jonah 1:1-17 | Date: October 19, 2025

CONNECT - “A Personal Reflection”

This section is designed to help you relate personally to the theme of the sermon. It encourages you to reflect on your own life experiences and how they connect to the message.

We all have moments where we’ve tried to “tune out” life—whether it’s through distraction, avoidance, or emotional withdrawal. 

Think about a time when you tried to numb something painful rather than face it. What did that do to your relationships—with others and with God? How might God have been trying to use that moment to wake you up instead of letting you drift away? Share with your group

ENGAGE - “Exploring the Scripture”

This section invites you to dive into the biblical passage, discuss its meaning, and apply it to your life through thoughtful questions.

Read Jonah 1:1–17 together.

• Jonah’s story begins with resentment and distance. Where do you see traces of resentment or spiritual distance in your own life right now?
  
  
• Jonah “...went down” again and again—to Joppa, into the boat, and finally into sleep. What do you think this “downward spiral” says about the nature of numbness and disobedience?
  
  
• How do you see parallels between Jonah’s indifference on the ship and the ways we sometimes ignore God’s voice or the pain around us? Share an example from your life
  
  
• The sailors—who didn’t know God—ended up crying out for mercy, while Jonah stayed silent. How might God be calling you to rediscover awe, empathy, or urgency in your faith?
  
  
• “Some of us are praying for the storm to stop when God is using it to start something.” What might God be trying to start in you right now?
  
  
• When have you mistaken “quiet” for peace when it was actually apathy? How can you tell the difference between the two?
  
  
• Even in Jonah’s rebellion, God used his story to reach others. How does that remind you of God’s grace and His ability to redeem even your running?

APPLY - “Putting the Scriptures into Action”

This section challenges us to take what we’ve learned and implement it in practical ways in our daily lives.

• Where are you tempted to “sleep through the storm” in your life—ignoring something God is trying to address?
  
  
• What does it look like to wake up spiritually this week? Maybe it’s facing a hard conversation, spending intentional time in prayer, or showing compassion to someone you’ve written off.
  
  
• Identify one “numbing agent” (like busyness, cynicism, or distraction) that keeps you distant from God. 
  
  • What’s one practical step you can take to replace it with presence—being with God and others instead of escaping?
    
    
• Who might be your “Ninevites”—that is, the people you’ve found hardest to love or forgive? 
  
  • What could it look like to pray for them sincerely this week?

PRAY - “Seeking God’s Guidance”

This section offers a short prayer to help us center our hearts and invite God to work in our lives through his scripture.

God, thank you that you don’t give up on us even when we run. Thank you for the storms that wake us up, the grace that holds us, and the second chances you prepare long before we ask for them. Help us to stop numbing what you’re trying to heal. Give us courage to face what you reveal and faith to release what we can’t control. Wake us up to your presence and your purpose today. Amen.

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